Wood engraving

The original method was developed c 1400. The outlines of the design to be engraved would put down on a side of smooth-grained wood, and, usually with a knife, the excess surface of the wood block (all but the lines) would be cut away. This left a set of raised wooden lines on the face of the block. In order make a print of this engraving, thick ink would be applied to the raised design. This is known as a relief. Finally, a sheet of paper (or other material) would be pressed firmly against the wood in order to assure that all the lines printed. This method led directly to the development of the printing press and the 1453 introduction of movable type by Johann Gutenberg.

The art of wood engraving, however, reached its pinnacle roughly 350 years later, with the works of Thomas Bewick. Bewick generally made his engraving in harder woods than normally used, and would engrave the end of a block instead of the side. Finding a knife not apt to working against the grain for harder woods, Bewick used an copper engraving tool called a burin, which has a V-shaped gauge.

Wood engraving was almost entirely superceded by the development of photoengraving, which is the method of making printing plates via photographic means. More recent wood engravers, including Rudolph Ruzicka, generally use Bewick's method. Wood engraving is still common as student or folk art.